Windermere Real Estate and the University of Washington have assembled another sensational field for the 2008 edition of the Windermere Cup regatta, including an appearance by the men's and women's crews from the United States Naval Academy, the Melbourne University women's crew from Australia and the under-23 men's national team from Poland. The 22nd-annual Windermere Cup takes place Saturday, May 3 at 10:20 a.m. on the Montlake Cut to start the Seattle Yacht Club Opening Day festivities. The crew races will be broadcast live in the Puget Sound area on KJR Radio (AM 950). Video coverage of the finishes will be aired on the Dawg Channel of GoHuskies.com. There are 18 events on this year's schedule, including races for masters and junior crews.

*** Please Note: Parking will be $5 in Lot E-1 and $11 in Lots E-10, E-11 and E-12. ***

The Men's Field
Rowing against top-ranked Washington in the men's eight-oared race are the under-23 national team from Poland and the United States Naval Academy. The Polish men will make their second Windermere Cup appearance as they placed third in the 2003 race. Three of the eight rowers expected to compete in Seattle were members of the Polish crew that finished fifth in the men's eight at the 2007 under-23 World Rowing Championships in Great Britain. Placing fourth in that race was the United States' eight that included UW junior Jessiah Johnson (Mercer Island, Wash./Mercer Island). Navy, currently ranked No. 12, makes its fourth Windermere Cup appearance. The Midshipmen visited Seattle in 1990, 2000 and 2004. They are coached for the 34th year by Rick Clothier who has Washington connections. Clothier lettered in 1964 and 1965 as a UW coxswain and spent five years from 1969-73 as the Huskies' freshman and lightweight coach.

The Women's Field
Joining the 15th-ranked Washington women's varsity eight are Melbourne University and Navy. The Melbourne women make their inaugural Windermere Cup appearance, their first opportunity to row the unique 2,000-meter Lake Washington course through the Montlake Cut that is annually lined with thousands of spectators in boats and on shore. The Melbourne crew won the 2006 title and was the runner-up in the women's eight at the 2007 Australian University Championships. The Melbourne University Boat Club (MUBC) was founded in 1859 and is the oldest rowing club in Australia. The Navy women's crew is rowing in the Windermere Cup for the second time. Navy placed fourth at the 1990 Opening Day regatta.

Results
Rowing results, race recaps and video of the finishes will be available Saturday afternoon on the official Washington Athletic Department website at: www.gohuskies.com

Live Race Coverage
Saturday's Windermere Cup races will be broadcast live in the Puget Sound area on KJR (AM-950). Radio coverage begins at 10:30 a.m. and runs until noon. KJR's Bob Rondeau calls the action with color commentary from former Husky coxswain and assistant coach Sean Mulligan. KJR's Ian Furness provides finish-line coverage and former UW rower Tyler Smith is on the course in the follow boat. Additionally, the Dawg Channel will provide free live video of the races. Log on to GoHuskies.cstv.com and follow the links to "Watch!"

The Montlake Course
The starting line for the Huskies' home regattas is on Lake Washington, parallel to the Evergreen Point floating bridge. The course runs from east to west through the Montlake Cut to the finish line near the mouth of Portage Bay.

Where to Watch
Spectators are encouraged to view the Windermere Cup races from the shores of the Montlake Cut on Saturday, May 3. This is a free community event with parking available at surrounding University of Washington lots. Parking will be available for $11 in the University lots around the football stadium (lots E-10,11,12). Parking in the large Montlake Lot (E-1) is $5. Please note that the Montlake Bridge will be closed to traffic from 9:40 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The races begin at 10:20 a.m. and are followed by the boat parade. The Montlake Bridge will be raised and remain open during the boat parade. A map listing the course and parking directions is available, courtesy of HuskyCrew.org at: Montlake Course/Parking Map

Home Course Advantage
The Huskies have had extraordinary success in past Windermere Cup races, taking advantage of the home course and vocal support from the large crowds. Washington was victorious in 15 of the last 17 Windermere Cup men's competitions while the UW women won 12 of the last 16 titles.

Men's Team Tidbits
> Navy -- The 12th-ranked Midshipmen varsity eight crew makes its fourth Windermere Cup appearance ... Navy finished second in all three previous visits to Seattle, in 2004, 2000 and 1990 ... Rick Clothier is in his 34th year as head coach at Navy. He lettered as a Husky coxswain in 1964 and 1965 and served as UW's freshman and lightweight coach from 1969-73.

> Poland -- The boat competing Saturday is the under-23 National Team, featuring three rowers from the crew that represented Poland at the 2007 U-23 World Championships in England and placed fifth in the men's eights ... Those three rowers are Dariusz Radosz, Zbigniew Schodowski and Maciej Mattik ... Additionally, Dominik Kubiak and Tomasz Cichocki rowed in fours at the U-23 world championships ... The Polish Rowing Federation (PRF) sends a crew to the Windermere Cup for the second time ... A crew from the Poland placed third in the 2003 Windermere race, behind Washington and Northeastern ... Richard Stadniuk, the president of the PRF, also accompanied that crew to Seattle in 2003 ... Mariusz Szumanski is coaching this Polish crew.

> Washington -- Defending national champion ... The Huskies' No. 1-ranked varsity eight won it's last 14 races, including four this season ... UW's last loss came in the grand final of the 2006 IRA Regatta ... Four members of last year's championship lineup are in the current crew ... Rowers Rob Gibson and Max Lang are taking the year off to vie for spots on the Canadian Olympic Team.

Women's Team Tidbits
> Navy -- Seven of the nine members of last year's varsity eight return ... The Mids finished 17th overall and 14th among college competitors at the 2007 Head of the Charles Regatta ... The Navy women make their third appearance at the Windermere Cup ... A Navy varsity eight placed second in 2000 and fourth in 1990 ... In his 11th year as the women's head coach at Navy is Mike Hughes, who served three seasons as the varsity lightweight coach and three more as the assistant heavyweight coach.

> Melbourne University (Australia) -- The Melbourne eight-oared crew won the 2006 Australian University championship and was the runner-up in 2007 ... Current rowers Jane Watson and Sylvie Withers were members of that 2007 crew ... Founded in 1859, the Melbourne University Boat Club is the oldest rowing club in Australia ... The crew visiting Seattle is coached by Ian Wright ... Melbourne is the third women's crew from Australia to compete in the Windermere Cup ... The Australian National Team broke an oar early in the 1997 race and did not finish ... A national team from Australia finished second to Washington in 1988.

> Washington -- The varsity eight is ranked No. 15 and has a 7-5 record ... UW opened the season by beating fourth-ranked Washington State and No. 11 USC to win the San Diego Crew Classic title ... Huskies' top boat placed 15th at the 2007 NCAA Championships, helping he team to a 10th-place finish ... Coxswain Alysha Koorji is the only member of this week's projected lineup that was a member of last year's Windermere Cup championship crew.

Opening Day Events
The Windermere Cup races are the headline events of the 39th-annual Opening Day Regatta and are held in conjunction with the Seattle Yacht Club's annual celebration of the opening of yachting season. This year there are 19 events on the racing schedule, including races for masters and junior crews. The Opening Day Regatta has been a traditional part of the ceremonies surrounding the beginning of yachting season since 1970, and the women's intercollegiate races were added to the schedule in 1976. The regatta is the preliminary event to the Seattle Yacht Club Opening Day Boat Parade. The theme for this year's boat parade is "A Three-Ring Circus," featuring more than 20 classes of boats adorned with that theme. The Windermere Cup regatta, along with the Seattle Yacht Club Opening Day Boat Parade, combine to mark the beginning of the region's much-anticipated boating season with one of Seattle's largest free public events. Huge crowds annually line the shores of "The Cut" and position their boats along the racing and parade course to witness the stirring displays of competition and pageantry.

The Trophies
When the Husky varsity eights take the water this weekend they will be vying for the engraved crystal Windermere Cup trophy. On the men's side the Huskies captured the Windermere Cup four of the last five years and 15 of the past 17 seasons. The UW men and women both won their featured races at the 2007 Windermere Cup regatta. The UW women have claimed 12 of the last 16 trophies. The second varsity eights will be competing for the Erickson Memorial Cascade Cup, renamed in 2002 to honor Husky Hall of Fame rower and coach Dick Erickson. As an oarsman, he lettered from 1956-58 and then coached the UW freshmen men from 1964-67. Erickson served as head varsity men's coach from 1968-87, leading the Huskies to 15 Pacific Coast championships, the 1970 IRA championship and a national championship in 1984. After retiring from coaching, Erickson served as UW's athletic facilities manager until his death in 2001. The Washington second varsity women won 14 of the 16 titles since Windermere began sponsoring the Cascade Cup in 1992, losing to Gonzaga last year and in 2004 against Washington State. The Husky men won 15 of 16 Cascade Cup trophies as Nottinghamshire (England) won in 1998. Last year, the UW men's freshman eight raced in, and won, the second varsity competition.

About the UW Men
The Huskies opened the season ranked No. 1 in the preseason coaches poll produced by USRowing and remained there in the current rankings (April 30). UW garnered 14 of 18 first-place votes. The lofty ranking isn't surprising as the Huskies are coming off an undefeated 2007 season, capped by their first victory at the IRA Championships since 1997. Five members of last year championship varsity eight crew return, including junior coxswain Katelin Snyder (Winter Park, Fla.), junior Will Crothers (Kingston, Ontario), senior Heath Allen (Durango, Colo.), junior Jessiah Johnson (Mercer Island, Wash./Mercer Island) and senior Steve Full (Cumberland, Maine). Two of last year's varsity rowers, Rob Gibson and Max Lang, are red-shirting the year while training for a berth on the Canadian Olympic Team. Two varsity eight rowers graduated, Aljosa Corovic and David Worley. Challenging for spots on the varsity will be last season's freshman crew members and seven of the eight rowers from UW's national champion second varsity boat. The Huskies won their last 14 races, including two during a 2008 season-opening triumph at the San Diego Crew Classic (Apr. 5-6). UW defeated No. 15 Oregon State on April 19 in Seattle and posted an open-water win at No. 4 California on April 26.

The Men's StaffMichael Callahan is now the men's head coach after three successful seasons as the freshman coach. He directed the Huskies' freshman crew to the 2006 national championship and bronze-medal performances in 2005 and 2007. Lucas McGee takes over the UW freshman coaching duties after holding the same position the previous three years at Brown.

About the UW Women
The Washington women's varsity remained in the No. 15 position in this week's (April 30) coaches poll. The Huskies were ranked as high as fourth after opening the season with a championship performance at the San Diego Crew Classic, where they defeated four ranked crews. They lost by one boat-length to then-No. 8 Washington State on April 12 in Seattle and by two seats to Oregon State on April 12. UW was edged by No. 1 California on April 26 in the Bay Area. The Huskies return four rowers and coxswain Alysha Koorji (Orinda, Calif.) from the crew that placed 15th in the varsity eight event at the 2007 NCAA Championships. The returning rowers are: senior Ashley Jones (Yakima, Wash./West Valley), junior Kim Kennedy (Calgary, Alberta), senior Cara Troelstra (Halifax, Nova Scotia) and senior Kim Armstrong (Snohomish, Wash./Snohomish). Also returning are five members of the second varsity eight that placed sixth at the 2007 NCAA Championships. An infusion of talent joins the varsity in the form of a quartet of sophomore rowers who led the novice eight to a runner-up finish at the 2007 Pac-10 Championships and placed fifth as a varsity four crew at the NCAAs.

The Women's Staff
The changes aren't limited to the athletes as the UW coaching staff underwent a major overhaul. Bob Ernst returns to the helm of the women's team after serving the last 20 years as the men's head coach. In his seven previous seasons with the UW women, from 1981-87, Ernst led the varsity eight to six titles at the National Collegiate Rowing Championships. Colin Sykes begins his first year as the varsity assistant coach after working as a men's varsity intern coach. Erica Schwab is in her fifth season as the novice coach. Sykes and Schwab were both Husky rowers.

Windermere Real Estate & Rowing
Windermere's heritage of supporting collegiate crew racing began over 20 years ago when the company sponsored the first annual Windermere Cup regatta in Seattle. Held in partnership with the University of Washington, the Windermere Cup has become one of the largest community events in Seattle, welcoming national and international crew teams for exciting competition while commencing the official opening day of boating season for the waters of the Puget Sound. In 2003, Windermere expanded its involvement with the sport and launched, in conjunction with Stanford University, the Windermere Real Estate Rowing Classic at Redwood Shores, Redwood City, Calif. For many visiting athletes, the Windermere Cup marks their first visit to the United States and Windermere Real Estate takes pride in providing a unique experience for these participants. As part of its generous sponsorship, Windermere offers transportation and accommodation for visiting teams along with sightseeing trips, mementos, and opportunities to give back to the local community through several programs, including a special visit to Children's Hospital.

About Windermere Real Estate
Windermere Real Estate is the largest residential real estate brand in the Western United States with more than 300 offices and 8,000 agents in ten Western states and British Columbia. Windermere has redefined the way real estate is practiced through its industry-leading tools and technologies and a demonstrated commitment to the communities it serves. For more information visit the company website at: www.windermere.com.